PRISON SENTENCE REDUCED FOR CONVICT'S COOPERATION

Mark Bonham already had the deal of a lifetime: 27 years in prison _ rather than a possible death sentence _ for the murder of a Bible school teacher whose green Mustang he coveted.

On Friday, Bonham's deal got a little bit better when a judge agreed to knock two more years off his sentence to reward him for helping prosecutors win murder convictions against two of the three men he hired to steal Rafael Costa's car.

"It was not my intention for this to happen," a goateed Bonham told Costa's family during Friday's hearing. "I realize I was wrong in the decisions I made, and that's why I cooperated from the very beginning."

In October 1995, Bonham hired Sergio Soto, 21, Ernesto Brady, 21, and Juan Saul Diaz, 22, for $500 and told them to steal a Mustang to replace his mother's car, which he wrecked, according to police.

But the trio, toting a gun Bonham bought for them, went a step further. They kidnapped Costa at a Lake Worth gas station, shot him four times in the head when he failed to extract money from a money machine and dumped his body on the side of Lake Worth Road.

When they brought Bonham the blood-soaked car the next day, he became alarmed and abandoned it in a grocery store parking lot. Bonham later came forward to police, and in June 1996, entered into a plea bargain with prosecutors.

In exchange for his 27-year sentence, Bonham testified against Sergio Soto, who was convicted in March of murder, carjacking and related charges. He faces the death penalty at a future hearing.

In July 1997, Brady pleaded guilty in the case and received a 40-year prison term. Diaz, the alleged triggerman, is still at large and has not been prosecuted.

At Friday's hearing, Bonham's attorney, David Roth, asked Circuit Judge John Phillips to reduce his client's sentence "to send a message" to others suspected of crimes that if they come forward and tell the truth, their honesty would be rewarded.

Phillips agreed that Bonham should be given some reward for his truthful and successful testimony, but he was unwilling to reduce his sentence to the 10- to 15-year term his attorney was seeking. Instead, he reduced it to 25 years.

Bonham also will get credit for the 21/2 years he has already served in the Palm Beach County Jail awaiting the resolution of the case.

Costa's sister, Ana Valdez, said she was happy with the judge' decision. "I was afraid of more (reductions), so this is good," she said.

Prosecutor Dan Galo, meanwhile, said an investigation is still pending into what role Bonham's mother may have played in hiring men to steal the car.